Dominica Island Blog: Sharing Every Dominican Moment with the World

While browsing the internet a few days ago, I stumbled across this very interesting post over at Alex Shalman dot com titled “10 Life Lesson the Ernest Hemingway.” I found it so ironic, that I came across this post, when that same week I started reading - The Complete Short Stories of Ernest Hemingway: The Finca Vigia Edition.

In the post Robert of Flimjo.COM, describes now the best source for practical personal development is literature. And why nowhere else will you find better wisdom and insight to develop your sense of self and your character?

You will also find hidden pieces of advice and instruction. In other words, reading a great book not only provides you with a nice reading experience, but it also gives you value that far exceeds the price you paid for that book.

One the great writers you’ve inspired me is Ernest Hemingway, though I’ve just started reading some of his work. While Hemingway death was a tragedy, but he left behind legendary novels and collection of short stories that contain priceless guidance.

I strongly recommend you read “The Complete Short Stories of Ernest Hemingway: The Finca Vigia Edition” if you want to learn about Ernest Hemingway.

Below is an “excerpt” from the post:

“It is better to die on your feet than live on your knees.” For Whom the Bell Tolls

A bit strong to start off this list quotes. Nevertheless I found it appropriate; it illustrates the value and fulfillment of living while sticking to your beliefs and ideas. The minute you surrender your beliefs, you sacrifice who you are, and you condemn yourself to a life of timid submission.

“You can’t get away from yourself by moving from one place to another. There’s nothing to that.” The Sun Also Rises.

Everyone has problems and flaws. But running away from a realization and an acknowledgment of those issues won’t solve anything. Wherever you go, they will follow you. The hardest thing to do is look in the mirror and say, “I’m going to fix this. I can change.”

“There is only now and if now is only two days, then two days is your life and everything in it will be in proportion. This is how you live a life in two days. And if you stop complaining and asking for what you will never get, you will have a good life.” For Whom the Bell Tolls.

One of the most important themes of For Whom the Bell Tolls is the well-known principle that one should “seize the day.” Yesterday doesn’t matter, and neither does tomorrow. Today is what you have, and it makes sense to make the best of it.

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Photo by:kanzeon zen center

Firstly, I’m not a monk, nor will I ever become one. However, I find great inspiration in the way they try to live their lives: the simplicity of their lives, the focus and mindfulness of every activity, the calm and peace they find in their everyday life.

You probably don’t want to become a Zen monk either, but you can live your life in a more Zen-like manner by following 10 simple rules.

Why live more like a Zen monk? Because who among us can’t use a little more concentration, serenity, and mindfulness in our lives? Because monks for hundreds of years have devoted their lives to being present in everything they do, to being dedicated and to serving others. Because it serves as an example for our lives and whether we ever really reach that ideal is not the point.

However, for the people who like a little more detail; so here are some of the things I’ve discovered to work very well in my experiments with “Zen-like living”. As I said the beginning of the post - I am no Zen monk. However, I’ve realized that there are certain principles that can be applied to any life; no matter what your religious beliefs or what your standard of living.

Do one thing at a time. This rule (and some of the others that follow) will be familiar to long-time Zen Habits readers. Its part of my way of life and it’s also a part of the life of a Zen monk: single-task, don’t multi-task. When you’re eating, just eat. When you’re bathing, just bathe. Don’t try to knock off a few tasks while eating or bathing.

Do it completely. Put your mind completely on the task. Don’t move on to the next task until you’re finished. If, for some reason, you have no choice but to move on to something else, try to at least put away the unfinished task and clean up after yourself. For example, if you’re cleaning up around the yard, don’t just start fixing the roof until you’ve put away the equipment you used to clean up the yard. Roll or drive the lawnmower in its rightful area together with the rake and broom. Then you’re done with that task and can focus completely on the next task at hand.

Do less. A Zen monk doesn’t lead a lazy life: he wakes early and has a day filled with work. However, he doesn’t have an unending task list either — there are certain things he’s going to do today, and no more. If you do less, you can do those things more slowly, more completely and with more concentration. If you’re most people, and full your day with tasks, you will be rushing from one thing to the next without stopping to think about what you do.

Develop rituals. Zen monks have rituals for a lot of things they do, from eating to cleaning to meditation. Ritual gives something a sense of importance — if it’s important enough to have a ritual. You don’t have to learn the Zen monk rituals — you can create your own, for the preparation of food, for eating, for cleaning, for what you do before you start your work, for what you do when you wake up and before you go to bed, for what you do just before exercise. Anything you want, really.

Assign time for certain things. There are certain times in the day of a Zen monk designated for certain activities. A time for bathing, working, cleaning, and eating, ensures that those things get done regularly. You can designate time for your own activities, whether its work or cleaning or exercise or quiet contemplation. If it’s important enough to do regularly, consider designating a time for it.

Think about what is necessary. There is little in a Zen monk’s life that isn’t necessary. Unlike most of us he doesn’t have a closet full of shoes or the latest in trendy clothes. He doesn’t have the latest gadgets, cars, televisions, or iPod. He has basic clothing, basic shelter, basic utensils, basic tools, and the most basic food. Now, I’m not saying you should live exactly like a Zen monk — I certainly don’t. But it does serve as a reminder that there is much in our lives that aren’t necessary, and it can be useful to give some thought about what we really need, and whether it is important to have all the stuff we have that’s not necessary.

Live simply. Rule 6 is that if something isn’t necessary, you can probably live without it. And so to live simply is to rid your life of as many of the unnecessary and unessential things as you can, to make room for the essential. Now, what is essential will be different to each person. For me, my family, Island life, my exercising and my reading are essential. There is no law saying what should be essential for you — but you should consider what is most important to your life, and make room for that by eliminating the other less essential things in your life.

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I’m 30 years old, and I’ve made my fair amount of mistakes in my life. I’m not a big believer in regrets … and I have learned a lot from every single mistake and to this date my life is great.
However, there are a few things I wish I had known when I was graduating from high school and heading out as an adult in life.

Would I change things? Hmm…I’m not so sure. I might never have gotten into a mountain of credit card debt, but then I wouldn’t have learned the amazing satisfaction of getting out of it. I might have made better career choices, but then I wouldn’t have all the work experience that makes me the Senior FedEx CSR and blogger that I am today.

I might not left my parents home to go rent a single studio apartment at $600.00 a month …but then I wouldn’t know how it is to live my own and how to budget my money.

I don’t think I would change any of that. However, looking back, there are some lessons I’ve learned that I would probably tell my 18-year-old self. Do I share them now to share my regrets? No, I share them in hopes that younger men and women, just starting out in life, can benefit from my mistakes and my lessons.

What follows isn’t a thorough list, but it’s one that I hope proves useful to at least a few people.

Control my impulse spending. If there’s anything that got me in trouble financially, its impulse spending. Buying clothes when I don’t need them. Buying gadgets because I gotta have them. Ordering stuff online because it’s so easy. These days I’ve learned to control my impulses, at least a little better. Now, I give myself some time to breathe. I think over my purchases, see if I’ve got the money, think about whether it’s a need or a want. That would have been a useful tool 15 years ago.

You gotta stay active. I was in cricket, cross country and basketball in high school, but once I started working, the running and basketball began to slowly fade away. Not right away — I played pick-up basketball for years after high school. But even that went away, until I became inactive. Playing with my friends outdoors winded me. Am very active now, but I’m still trying to as fit as was in high school.

How to plan finances. I always knew that I was supposed to budget and track my spending, when I became an adult and decide to rent my first apartment. I just was too lazy to do it. And I didn’t have a good idea of how to actually do it. Now, I’ve learned how to plan, and how to stick to that plan. Sure, I deviate from my plan, but I’ve learned how to handle that too. Maybe that’s not a skill you can learn from book reading. You just gotta practice. Well, I hope to teach it to my children before they go out on their own.

Watching TV is a huge, huge waste of time. I don’t know how much TV I’ve watched over the years, but most of it is just crap - except sports of course. Hours and days and weeks I’ll never have back. Who cares what happens on reality TV, when reality is slipping by outside? Time is something you’ll never get back — don’t waste it on TV.

Bacardi white run is seriously evil. I won’t go into details, but it should suffice to say that I had some bad experiences, and I’m not sure I learned very much from them or benefited in any way except to learn that Bacardi is the drink of the Devil.

Here is a bonus!

Forget the Daily drama. Focus on being happy. There have been many things that have happened to me, professionally and personally, that seem like the end of the world. And while these things were bad, they get blown up in our heads so that they become major drama. They caused me to be depressed from time to time. What a waste of time. If I realized that it was all in my head and that I could be happy instead if I focused on the positive, on what I did have, and what I could be doing … I could have skipped all the moping about.

All these mistakes you’re going to make, despite this advice? They’re worth it. My 18-year-old self would maybe have read this post and said, “Good advice!” And then he would have proceeded to make the same mistakes, despite good intentions. I was a good kid, but I wasn’t good at following advice. I had to make my own mistakes, and live my own life. And that’s what I did, and I don’t regret a minute of it. Every experience I’ve had (even the barcardi ones) have led me down the path of life to where I am today. I love where I am today, and wouldn’t trade it for the world. The pain, the stress, the drama, the hard work, the mistakes, the depression, the hangovers, the debt… it was all worth it.

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